The Corporate War Dead Swed et al. 2018 Armed Forces & Society pdf

Abstract

<p>From an obscure sector synonymous with mercenaryism, the private military and security industry has grown to become a significant complementing instrument in military operations. This rise has brought with it considerable attention. Researchers have examined the role of private military and security companies in international relations as well as the history of these companies, and, above all, the legal implications of their use in place of military organizations. As research progresses, a significant gap has become clear. Only a handful of studies have addressed the complex of issues associated with contractors’ demographics and lived experience. This paper sheds some light over this lacuna, examining contractors’ demographics using descriptive statistics from an original dataset of American and British contractors who died in Iraq between the years 2003-2016. The paper augments our understanding of an important population of post-Fordist contracted workforce, those peripheral workers supplementing military activity in high-risk occupations with uncertain long-term outcomes. <b></b></p>